Stock futures rise as Q3 nears end

By IBT Staff Reporter09/30/09 AT 7:32 AM

Stock futures pointed to a higher open on Wednesday, the final day of the quarter, with investors awaiting data on employment and gross domestic product (GDP).

The ADP National Employment Report is set for release at 8:15 a.m. EDT. Economists forecast private employers cut 210,000 in September, an improvement from 298,000 shed in August, according to a Reuters poll.

The final estimate for second-quarter GDP, is also due at 8:30 a.m., with analysts seeing the economy contracting at an annualized rate of 1.2 percent.

The Institute of Supply Management in Chicago is to release the September index of manufacturing activity at 9:45 a.m. A reading of 52.0 is forecast, up from 50.0 in the previous month.

With the third quarter drawing to a close, trading is expected to be volatile as traders engage in window dressing, with fund managers selling laggards in favor of outperformers to spruce up portfolios.

CIT Group Inc is nearing a plan that would likely hand the commercial lender over to its bondholders, sources said late Tuesday. CIT was preparing an exchange offer that would eliminate up to 40 percent of its more than $30 billion in outstanding debt. In premarket trading, CIT shares fell 55 percent to $1.42.

Pay czar Ken Feinberg is to speak in Chicago at 1:00 p.m. EDT. Wall Street is hoping for more details on a government plan that would limit excesses in bankers' pay, a hot topic at last week's G20 summit.

Goldman Sachs raised its rating on Nike Inc to buy from neutral, a day after the apparel and footwear maker posted higher quarterly profit and beat estimates.

U.S. stocks fell Tuesday after a surprise drop in a gauge of consumer confidence.

The S&P 500 is up 15.4 percent so far this quarter and is making a run for its best performance since the fourth quarter of 1998. The benchmark index has rallied nearly 60 percent from a 12-year low in early March.